Do you think Erik Eriksons developmental stages are still relevent in todays communication age?
Steven, here’s my take First, Erickson himself pointed out that all stages can occur at any point in life. And, to me, his stages are not something to plan and work to achieve, if you are trying that. They are descriptive, not prescriptive. But also, I feel that his analyses can be quite inaccurate. They are abstract descriptions of psychological aspects of a person’s life–a model and fantasy person. The phases he described, even assuming they are accurate in the details he uses, are simplistic (even though they seem somewhat complex). Real people are much more complex. In other words he has constructed a neat little diagram of a person’s psychological maturation that does illuminate certain aspects, but it’s too “one-size-fits-all.” This is, to me, one of psychology’s most significant blindsides. And, I have another reason for urging caution regarding his phase descriptions: He doesn’t really take into account personality/temperament types that can differ a lot. Personality is a powe
